


Matt and Emily

by Ellie226



Series: The Community [4]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Abuse, Age Play, Daddy Kink, Discipline, Domestic Violence, Emotional Abuse, F/F, F/M, M/M, Mentions of Past Eating Disorder, Mommy Kink, Punishment, Spanking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-25
Updated: 2013-07-25
Packaged: 2017-12-21 07:46:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,477
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/897735
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ellie226/pseuds/Ellie226
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Matt and Emily have been together for a long time, and mostly, they're pretty happy. Ben is not, and Emily intends to rectify that.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Matt and Emily

**Author's Note:**

> More domestic violence and mentions of past eating disorders

Emily’s POV

I walked with Daddy to the door when Mr. David knocked, half hiding behind Matt. Ben’s daddy was really mean, and I couldn’t believe that we were just sending Ben home. I didn’t want Mr. David to know that we knew something was wrong, so I couldn’t argue about it anymore, but I was going to come up with a plan.

“Was he good?” Mr. David asked, holding out a hand for Ben. He’d been standing beside me, on Daddy’s other side, and I grabbed his hand.

“Daddy?” I asked, feeling frantic at the idea that we were about to send him home. “Can Ben spend the night?”

Mr. David snapped his fingers, and Ben slipped away from me, hurrying to his daddy’s side. “Not tonight,” he told me.

“But-”

Daddy interrupted me, “Mr. David said not tonight, Em. I know you had a good time with Ben, but I’m sure his daddy will let him come back and play soon.” Smiling at the other daddy, he added, “Ben was a perfect angel, and he’s welcome here anytime.”

Ben smiled a little bit at that, peeking up at his daddy. Mr. David raised an eyebrow, telling Daddy, “I’m glad he’s good for you. I was starting to think he didn’t know how to behave anywhere.”

Daddy was watching Ben’s face. It had fallen at his daddy’s words, and Matt spoke up, “I can’t believe he’s anything but good ever; you must be very proud of him. He’s very thoughtful.”

“Thanks for having him.” 

Watching Mr. David, I realized that he knew something was up, and I let myself lean into Daddy, needing a reminder that he was there. Daddy reached out, ruffling Ben’s hair, and replying, “Like I said, anytime. It was nice to have someone for Emily to play with. Maybe some of those manners will rub off.”

Ben’s daddy nodded at that, and they left, starting back toward their home. Matt kept the door open for a moment later, watching them with a troubled expression. As angry as I was at him, I gave him a squeeze.

“You tried,” I whispered, not liking how sad he looked.

He smiled down at me, hugging me back, “I tried,” he agreed. “I’m sorry that he wouldn’t stay today, Em, but I think we helped a little.”

Shutting the door, he led me to the couch and pulled me down into his lap, hugging me tightly as he explained, “Ben knows that we’re here now, and I’m going to try to get his daddy to let Ben stay here more often. And eventually, hopefully, Ben will realize that he should leave. And then we’ll help him more.”

“I wanted to make him stay today.”

“I know,” he hugged me even tighter, “I did too.”

I couldn’t stay mad at him when he looked so miserable, and I stayed in his lap. Matt liked to cuddle more than I did, but I figured that I could handle it if he needed me right now.

Matt’s POV

Em seemed out of sorts all night. She was clingier than usual, and she didn’t stray more than an arm length away. 

Dinner was a trial, in a way that I thought we’d moved long past. She tried to convince me that we should just eat fruit. When I vetoed that suggestion, she would only suggest other things she knew I’d never be able to agree to. Finally, I decided, although I tried to have her make decisions about food.

“I understand that you don’t feel hungry,” I told her calmly, catching the hands she was using to gesture wildly while complaining about how I was trying to make her fat, “but we eat three meals a day, every day. If you don’t feel like you can stomach a big meal, we can have veggies with hummus, and some yogurt with granola and fruit. Or, I’ll make eggs and toast. Which would you prefer?”

“I’m not hungry,” she insisted, stomping her foot in frustration.

I nodded, keeping a firm hold of her, “I understand what you’re saying, but we’re going to eat dinner. Are you going to choose, or would you like me to do it?”

“Hummus,” she practically growled at me.

Kissing the top of her head, I nodded, “Hummus and veggies with yogurt and fruit it is. Thank you, Em. I want you to take a seat, and I’ll get everything.”

She made an ugly face, but she walked to a stool once I released her. I filled a large glass with ice water, handing it over, “Try drinking some of that,” I instructed calmly, waiting until she did as I asked to turn to the refrigerator.

Em kept the refrigerator well stocked, and it was easy enough to pull everything out. I layered the yogurt with berries and granola, deciding that too much choice wasn’t going to help anyone this evening. Plating some vegetables and hummus, I put them down in front of her.

“Eat up, baby,” I said, keeping my voice firm. I was relieved when she slowly spooned yogurt into her mouth, and I busied myself getting my own meal.

It took her a bit longer to eat than normal, but I had expected that. I tried to pace myself, and I made light conversation. I wanted to get through the meal, and then we could just relax together. 

Em had the same idea, and I watched her force herself to eat the final bites of dinner. After loading the dishwasher, she took my hands and led me up to the bedroom, where she grabbed her kindle.

“Read,” she ordered, and so that’s what we did.

Ben’s POV

Daddy was in an awful mood when he picked me up, and I felt like I was walking on eggshells. I wanted to make him happy, but he kept shrugging me off, finally swatting me hard.

“Stop hanging all over me, Benjamin. Go find something to do and quit being a pest,” he ordered.

Nodding, I swallowed hard and then went off to the playroom. Daddy didn’t want me mucking it up with lots of toys, but I’d gone to the library, so there was a fresh stack of books to read. I curled myself up into an armchair, and lost myself in a story.

I was so involved that I didn’t hear Daddy calling for me, and I didn’t even realize that he wanted me until he grabbed my arm.

“Ouch!” I yelped, forgetting myself for a moment.

His eyes darkened, and I stammered out an apology. It didn’t help. It never really did. I found myself being taken up the stairs and to the nursery, where he roughly undressed me for bed.

I was dreading another night in the crib, but that should have been the least of my concerns. When my jeans were being pulled off, the tube of arnica gel slipped out, and Daddy saw it. I didn’t notice until Daddy stopped lecturing me.

That deadly silence was never good, and I twisted to see what he was looking at, my heart sinking.

“What is this?” he asked, enunciating each word carefully, his voice icy. Picking up the tube, he looked at me, waiting for an answer.

“Arnica gel, sir,” I whispered, terrified. 

He nodded, asking, “And where did it come from?”

I wanted to lie, but Daddy always knew, and I didn’t want to get punished for it. “Miss Sarah gave it to me,” I admitted.

“Oh, she did?” he asked, his tone softening. 

I nodded quickly, “Yes sir. I didn’t ask for it, but she told me that I had to take it.”

“Why would she do that?” 

“For my bruises,” I admitted.

He nodded, his expression concerned, and he asked, “Where do you have bruises, Ben?”

I silently showed him my upper arm. I shouldn’t have been surprised at what happened next.

“Did you tell them how you got the bruises?” he said, his voice taking on an ugly, mocking quality. I didn’t know what to do.

“I asked, did you tell them how you got the bruises?” he repeated, grabbing me by the back of the neck. “Hmm? You ungrateful little brat?”

He was hurting me, and I tried to squirm free. It was the wrong thing to do, and he pinched harder as he dragged me to the corner, shoving me into time out. I couldn’t help but let out a shriek when my face collided with the wall, and it only made him angrier. Leaving me in the corner, he stalked out of the room, and I tried to calm myself down. 

When he returned, Daddy was carrying several switches, and he jerked me out of the corner to punish me. It was bad. The switch just kept coming down. When I cried out, he hit harder. And when the switches had all broken, he resorted to using his hands.

Once he’d vented his rage, I was forced into the crib, nude, and he brought up the rail with an ominous click.

“You stay in there and think,” he ordered. “I don’t want to hear anything from this room.” Grabbing Theodore, he told me, “I don’t want you be distracted,” then, he left. I listened as he locked the nursery door behind him.

I couldn’t nod or speak. I was too sore, and my throat was raw from wailing. I lay as still as I could in the crib, in too much pain to sleep. It was dark, and the tree branches scratched against the windows.

I listened closely to Daddy’s movements around the house, terrified that he’d come back. When he finally went to bed, I was relieved, and then I felt sick at the idea that I didn’t want him to come back.

It was an awful night. Every time I’d doze off, I’d move, and it would wake me up. I wanted to die. He was so angry; I’d never made him that angry before.

He wasn’t any happier the next morning when he unlocked the door and took down the side of the crib, barking, “Go to the bathroom, and don’t dawdle. You’re just going to stay here today. I don’t have time to deal with you; some of us have to work.”

Slowly, painfully, I forced myself to my feet, biting back any complaints I might make. I thought I’d fall, but I made it to the bathroom and back, where Daddy was waiting for me. He nodded at a pair of sweatpants and a teeshirt that he’d thrown on a chair.

“You can get yourself dressed. No TV. No books. No toys. You can just sit in here or the playroom and think. You stay inside, do you hear me?”

“Yes sir,” I whispered, my throat sore. I carefully dressed myself, grateful that he wasn’t doing it this morning. Even when I hadn’t been bad, Daddy was always hurrying when he dressed me, and I didn’t think I could take being pushed and pulled at.

“No phone,” he added. “You know what you’re allowed during a punishment, and I better not hear that you disobeyed me today. We’re going to be talking more when I get home.”

I nodded, not liking the sound of that. Talking was never talking, and I didn’t want to get punished again.

He turned then, banging and crashing about as he left the house. I wanted to sit, but I was too sore, and I decided that a shower might help a bit.

I hadn’t bothered to turn on the light when I’d been in the bathroom earlier, too eager to show Daddy that I was listening about being quick. When I hit the switch, flooding the bathroom with light, I saw my face in the mirror.

It was bad. It had never been that bad here, and I began to take inventory of my injuries. I didn’t get far before I decided to turn off the lights. I could shower another time. I didn’t want to see.

Emily’s POV

“Ben’s not here,” I told Lucy. We were sitting at a table, playing, and I’d only just realized it. 

He always came to daycare. His daddy didn’t like the daycare, but he said Ben wasn’t trustworthy enough to stay home alone. Lucy was only here Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, but Ben was here every day, like me.

Lucy shrugged, “He prob’ly got sick. There’s that flu thing.”

“So? Then you go in the sick room,” I pointed out. It wasn’t so much a room as a cubby, but there was a soft bed, and we just slept when we had to stay there.

“Maybe his daddy didn’t want him to, Em,” Lucy said. “Maybe they stayed home together?”

“Ben’s daddy doesn’t wan’ stay home with him, Lucy,” I snorted. “He even went to work yesterday, and it was Sunday.”

“I don’t know then,” Lucy replied, giving me a look.

She seemed irritated, but I couldn’t let it go, “Something’s wrong, Lucy. I know it.”

“No you don’t. You’re just thinking something’s wrong because of yesterday, but Ben’s just at home. Leave it alone, Em’ly.”

I was absolutely, positively, not supposed to leave daycare by myself, but I knew that I was right about this. Something was wrong. Considering my options, I made a decision. Daddy would be not so happy about it, but he would understand.

“You just tell ‘em I went to the bathroom if they ask,” I instructed Lucy, watching the adults closely. There were only two of them in the room with us. Miss Karen was changing a diaper, and Miss Maggie was helping Michael paint.

Lucy grabbed my arm, “This is a bad plan, Em. Just stay here. It’s Monday; Monday’s the early day for your daddy anyway. He’ll come and get you, and then you can tell him.”

I shook my head at that, “I’ll be back in a little bit,” I promised. Michael had just spilled paint, and it was pretty much the perfect distraction. I slipped out the door and then out of the building without saying anything else.

Daycare is two blocks from our house, right by the good park. When it’s nice, we walk, and I knew that I could get to Ben’s house in just a couple minutes. 

I hadn’t really considered that the door would be locked, but I figured that wasn’t a deterrent at this point. I’d already walked out of daycare, and I was pretty sure that something bad had happened to Ben. Either I was about to walk away with no consequences because I was right, or I was about to be in a ton of trouble. 

Daddy was nice, but he was a very efficient spanker. In spite of that, I silently wished that I was about to be in a ton of trouble. I wanted to help Ben, but I was scared about what I was going to find once I figured out a way in.

Ben’s POV

I’d slowly made my way down to the playroom, with a quick stop in the kitchen. I wasn’t allowed to just get myself food, but I filled a glass with water. I settled myself in the playroom and slowly drank, staring off into space.

Everything hurt. It hurt to sit, but it hurt to lay down too. And, I was hungry. Daddy and I had breakfast the day before, but I’d slept through lunch at Em’ly’s house, and I hadn’t had any dinner. For a minute, I let myself think about what it would have been like if I’d just stayed yesterday.

Mr. Matt would have cuddled me, and I would have eaten dinner with him and Emily. He seemed like the kind of daddy who would read bedtime stories, and then he would have tucked me into the crib. I didn’t love sleeping in a crib, but I liked the way Mr. Matt fussed with the blankets and pillows, acting like me being comfortable was the most important thing in the world.

I shouldn’t be thinking like this. That might be what it was like to begin with, but it wouldn’t last. Something would happen. Emily would decide she didn’t want to share anymore, or Mr. Matt would realize that Daddy was right. If I’d stayed yesterday, then I would have had a little while of nice stuff, but then it would have all been over, and I would be alone again.

“Ben,” someone hissed, rapping at the window.

I jumped, wincing, then turned to look at Emily. Her eyes widened, and she ordered fiercely, “Let me in. Right now, Benjamin.”

I didn’t even realize what I was doing; her tone was so authoritative that I didn’t stop to think that she wasn’t a grown up at all. She was all the way in my backdoor before I stopped, giving her a look.

“You’re not a grown up, Em’ly.”

“You’re a mess,” she replied, grabbing my chin and shifting it so she could get a look. “Your daddy did this?”

I jerked away at that, glaring at her, “You aren’t ‘posed to be here right now.”

“He’s not ‘posed to hit you,” she retorted, putting her little hands on her hips. Even though I was short, Emily was even shorter, and I tried to draw myself up and look imposing.

“Go ‘way.”

She shook her head fiercely, “You’re gonna come to my house, and you aren’t going to come back ever again. He’s not gon’ hit you again, Ben.”

“Just go home,” I said, sounding more like I was pleading than anything else.

“Either you come with me now, or ‘m gon’ call my daddy, and he’s gon’ carry you to my house. You need Michael’s mommy too.”

“I’m fine,” I insisted. “It’s not ‘s’bad as it looks.”

“Is too.”

“No it’s not,” I told her. “Now you go ‘way! Your daddy and Aunt Charlotte said it was my choice, and I don’t wanna go no place else. Daddy loves me.”

“Then why’s he hitting you?”

“Because he loves me, and he wants me to be good.”

Emily shook her head, “Nu uh. It’s because he wants to hit someone. You come with me right now, and then you can stay at my house. And he won’t hit you again, Ben. My daddy won’t let him. You just come live at my house now, please.”

“I don’t want to,” I repeated.

“Well, you’re not making good choices, so it’s not a choice anymore,” she spat back at me, looking pleased with herself for a minute. “Come on. You got anything you wanna bring with us?”

“I’m not going, Emily.”

Glaring at me, she whipped out her cell phone and placed a call, “Daddy?” she started. “Ben’s hurt bad, and I need you to come right now, please.”

“Emily!”

“Hush,” she ordered. “Daddy, he says he doesn’t wanna come with me, but you and Aunt Sarah need to come here and make him listen ‘fore his daddy gets back.”

Matt’s POV

Underneath her orders, Em sounded scared, and that was enough to terrify me, “Let me talk to one of the teachers,” I said firmly.

There was a pause, and I could practically see Emily in that moment, twisting at her hair, “Ummmmm. ‘m not so much at daycare right now...”

“Emily Anne,” I hissed, furious. She knew better.

“Okay, okay, Daddy. I know,” she was rallying. “But Ben wasn’t there, and I knew something was wrong, and it is, so please can you just spank me later and come and get me and Ben now? Please?”

“Can you guys go to our house?” I asked, realizing that I didn’t know where David was.

“Ben says he won’t.”

I nodded, shouldering into my jacket and grabbing my bag, “Let me talk to him, please.” 

Em handed the phone over without another word; Ben didn’t greet me, but I could hear him breathing, and I smiled before I started talking, hoping that it would make me sound less scary.

“Ben, I need you to go with Em back to my house now please.”

“I can’t,” he insisted, sounding very close to tears.

I nodded, making my way to Sarah’s office, “Sweetheart, I’m not asking. I’m telling you that I want you and Emily to go back to my house this minute. Are you dressed?”

“Uh huh, but-”

“No buts, Benjamin,” I ordered firmly. “Just go. Right now, and I’ll meet you there in a couple of minutes.” I scribbled a note on a post-it, handing it to Sarah and starting to gather her stuff.

“I’m not ‘posed-”

“Benjamin Andrew,” I warned, “do you need help going? Because if I get to my house, and you and Em aren’t there, I’m going to be walking over to your house, picking you up, and carrying you. And you’re welcome to ask Em what happens when she needs help going someplace. Now march, young man.”

I could hear movement, and then Emily said, “Daddy? We’re goin’.”

“Thank you, baby. Aunt Sarah and I are on our way. When you get to our house, lock the doors.”

“Yes Daddy,” Emily replied, hanging up.

Emily’s POV

“Come on,” I told Ben, holding out my hand to Ben. Once he grasped it, I quietly led him out the backdoor. Cutting through the backyards, I got to our house and let us in. 

“Em’ly?” Ben asked, looking nervous, “What happens when your Daddy helps you go someplace?”

I shrugged, concerned with locking the door behind us and getting Ben someplace where he could lay down. He didn’t look so good. “

“Daddy carries me to wherever ‘m ‘posed to be goin’, and I get in trouble,” I explained, drawing the curtains and helping Ben to the couch in the playroom. 

“How?”

“Lay down,” I ordered, waiting until he listened. I covered him up with the afghan before I said, “Depends. Sometimes, it just means I get a swat, and sometimes, I have to write lines. And one time, when Daddy said I was just full of bad choices, I got a spankin’ with the hairbrush.”

Rubbing my backside in remembered pain, I shrugged, “It was prob’ly one of the baddest spankin’s ever, but Daddy was real unhappy with me. I’d maybe skipped a few therapy appointments, and so he said he was gon’ take me, so I wouldn’t get in the car, then I wouldn’t get outta the car, then I wouldn’t go back in the office...he had to carry me lots, and I maybe got a little kicky ‘cause I was mad and embarrassed.”

Ben’s eyes were wide with horror, and I made a face, “It sounds worse than it was,” I assured him.

“No it doesn’t,” I heard over my shoulder.

“Daddy!” I ran to him, hugging him tightly.

“Hey Ben,” Daddy said over my head, hugging me back. “Is she fibbing to you about her behavior? That time she wouldn’t go to therapy, she was acting like she was possessed.”

“Daddy,” I grumped, letting go.

He smiled at me, but I noticed how worried he looked as he said, “I kept expecting her head to spin around. How’re you doing, Ben? Em said you had some new owies.”

I turned to look at Ben, watching as he nodded at Daddy. Before I could tell Matt anything, I found myself turned and gently swatted.

“I know a little girl who needs to go and lay down for a bit,” Daddy told me. It wasn’t a request, and he added, “If you can’t sleep, then I’d suggest you spend your time thinking about not scaring people by wandering off.”

“Fine,” I grumbled, leaving. 

“And call the daycare to let them know you’re home,” he called after me.

Matt’s POV

Ben looked awful. There was dried blood on his face, not to mention the bruises everywhere and the black eyes.

“Sweetheart,” I said gently, “I brought Sarah to see you. We need to get you checked out so we know how bad you’re hurt.”

“You stay?” he asked.

I was relieved to hear that, and I crossed the floor quickly to sit beside the couch, “Nobody could make me leave,” I promised. “I’ll hold your hand the whole time, and you can squeeze if you need to. Okay?”

“‘k,” Ben mumbled, shifting a little. I wanted to swoop him up in my arms and cuddle with him, but I had no idea how badly he was hurt.

“You are such a brave boy,” I praised. “I think after we’re all done, we should eat some lunch. How does that sound?”

That got a small smile, and Ben whispered, “‘m hungry.”

“Then let’s get you all looked at, Mr. Ben, and then we’ll make Matt make us lunch,” Sarah said. “Do you like grilled cheese? Matt makes really good grilled cheese, and I bet he has tomato soup too.”

“K,” Ben agreed.

Kneeling on the floor beside the couch, Sarah asked, “Can you tell me where you hurt?”

Ben was quiet for a moment before saying, “Ev’rywhere.”

“Okay,” Sarah nodded. “What’s the worst?”

Using his free hand, Ben carefully indicated his torso, and Sarah turned to me, “Can you help Ben sit up please? I think this might be easier if we get him undressed.” She looked at Ben then, “Is that alright?”

“Nobody else come in?”

“Nobody, sweetheart,” I assured him. “And we’ll keep you mostly wrapped in the blanket. We’ll just uncover a bit when we need to.”

He nodded, but he didn’t start to take off his clothes. 

“Ben?” I prodded, “Can you take off your shirt?”

It was the wrong thing to say, and his eyes flooded with tears as he shook his head, choking out, “Hurts.”

“That’s no problem,” I said quickly, silently vowing to kill David myself. “Can I help?”

At his nod, I slowly drew the shirt over his head, letting out a little breath when I saw the damage. 

There were bruises everywhere, and his back was covered in thin welts. In places, they had broken open and were weeping blood. Sarah tried to be gentle, but Ben flinched his way through the exam, holding tightly to my hand.

“Alright, Ben,” Sarah said, stopping what she was doing and sitting back on her heels. “So far, I think we’ve got a broken nose, a sprained wrist, and it looks like there are some cracked ribs. Have you gone potty since you got hurt?”

He nodded, and Sarah asked, “Was there blood?”

I was relieved to see him shake his head, since that meant it was unlikely that David had done any serious kidney damage.

Ben let me help him up enough to take off the sweatpants, and I was amazed that he’d even been able to sit. The marks on his back continued all the way down his calves, and his ass looked like hamburger.

“Oh sweetheart,” I murmured, “what happened?”

“I was bad,” he replied. “I wasn’t-’m bad. I made him mad.”

“This was not your fault,” I told him, realizing a moment too later that I sounded very angry. He cowered, and I squeezed his hand gently, “Do you understand, Ben? It doesn’t matter what you do; this is not okay. If your daddy got mad, he should have taken some time to calm down, but he isn’t allowed to hurt you.”

Sarah had been pulling out various things from her bag, and she interrupted our conversation, “Matt, can you get me some hot water and washcloths?”

“Ben, are you okay if I leave you with Miss Sarah for a minute?” 

He gripped my hand even tighter, although he wouldn’t answer, and I smiled at him, “It’s okay, sweetheart.” Fishing my cell phone out of my pocket, I called Emily.

“‘m ‘posed to be thinking,” she answered, sounding very grumpy.

I rolled my eyes, “I need you to get a bowl full of hot water and some washcloths for Aunt Sarah, please. We need to help clean Ben off.”

“‘k, Daddy,” she answered, not sounding nearly as irritated as before; she hated to be cut off from whatever was going on, and being relegated to the bedroom had apparently upset her. 

I hung up, standing, “Em’ll be done in a minute with the water and washcloths. Let’s get you covered up,” I suggested.

Ben’s POV

I hurt all over, but I loved the way it felt when Mr. Matt helped me lay back down, like I was made of glass. He helped me onto my tummy, explaining that Miss Sarah would need to clean off my back, and then he carefully covered me up with the afghan.

“Honey, I want to try giving you a shot to help so you don’t hurt so much. Is that okay?” Miss Sarah asked.

I squeezed Mr. Matt’s hand, but I reluctantly nodded, allowing her to lift the afghan enough to swab a spot on my hip and inject.

“All done,” she announced, easing the needle back out.

Although I didn’t want to complain, I let myself ask, “But no more needles now?”

“No more, sugar,” Miss Sarah assured me. “We’ll wash some of this blood off, then I’ll wrap your ribs. Your nose is broken, but it’s not displaced, so I’m just going to leave it be, and it should heal up on its own.”

“What ‘bout my wrist?”

“Just a sprain; we’ll wrap it, and you need to rest it for me, okay?” she asked.

I nodded, yawning, and she told me, “That shot is going to make you sleepy, kiddo, and I’ll try to get you fixed up fast so you can take a nap. Deal?”

“Yes’m,” I mumbled. My eyelids felt heavy, and I really just wanted to curl up and sleep. “It don’t hurt so much.”

“Good,” she replied. 

Emily walked in then, balancing a large bowl of hot water and a stack of washcloths on a tray. Setting it down beside Miss Sarah, she raced out of the room without a word.

“Em?” Mr. Matt called.

“Just a second,” she yelled back. It took more than a second, but she came back quickly. In her hands, she had a rag doll. Thrusting it at me, she said seriously, “This is Delphinia.”

“Em?” Mr. Matt gave her a look, and she shrugged.

“We didn’t have time to get any of Ben’s toys, and I thought he might need something cuddly. He can borrow her until we get his stuff.”

“Until I go home,” I mumbled.

She looked away from her daddy then, locking eyes with me, “We already talked about this. You live here now.”

“Okay, bossy boots,” Mr. Matt intervened, reaching up to grab one of Emily’s hands. “I think that we can worry about that later.”

“No. You say later, but you mean-”

Mr. Matt raised an eyebrow at her, and she stopped talking then. “Thank you,” he said. “Go find something to do, please. Ben needs some privacy.”

She made a face, but she left, grumbling, and Mr. Matt just ignored it. “Alright, sweetheart,” he told me, “it’s time to get you cleaned up.”

“Pictures first,” Miss Sarah interrupted.”Then we’ll get you clean and fix you right up.”

Matt’s POV

Ben looked nervous at the prospect of more pictures, and I decided not to tell him that Charlotte was going to be here soon. Like yesterday, he was quietly obedient, although there was a lot more flinching, and even some tears today. 

I had to help Sarah, wiping dried blood from Ben’s face and keeping up a gentle patter of conversation to try to distract him. Even with the shot, he was hurting, and I was relieved once we were done.

“You’re being so brave,” I praised. “Can I go and make up some lunch? I don’t want to move you around too much.”

“I made it,” Emily’s voice piped up. “I was hungry.”

She was standing in the doorway, carefully holding a tray, and I motioned her over, “Thank you, baby.”

Setting the tray on the floor, Emily sat down on my lap. It was a surprise, but I didn’t let it show, anxious that Ben see that nothing was wrong. I didn’t want Emily to think that it wasn’t okay either.

Sarah, Ben, Emily, and I ate in the playroom. She’d gone ahead and made grilled cheese and tomato soup, which made me wonder if she’d been eavesdropping, but it was a relief to have lunch ready without me having to leave Ben.

He was starving. I watched him eat his sandwich and the mug of soup, seemingly without stopping to breathe, and I calmly handed over half of mine.

“Go on,” I nodded. “You’re hungry.”

“When Daddy tells you to eat somethin’, he means it,” Emily explained. She was actually eating, which was another thing to be happy about. “You want I should make you ‘nother one?”

“No thank you,” Ben was quiet, although he practically inhaled the half I’d given him.

“When was the last time you ate?” I asked, keeping my voice casual.

It wasn’t any use. Ben’s shoulders tensed at the question, although he answered me, “I had breakfast with Daddy.”

“Em’s a good cook,” I told him, wanting to change the subject to something less dangerous. “She bakes too.”

Ben didn’t say anything to that, and he looked like he was about ready to fall asleep. Gently running my fingers through his hair, I asked, “Sweetheart? Would you like to take a little nap?”

“‘m okay.”

“Are you sure? You look pretty sleepy. You could sleep in here if you’d like, or I can take you upstairs to nap in the crib.”

“‘m okay,” he repeated, although it was taking him longer to open his eyes after he blinked.

I wanted to treat him the way I treated Em. She needed choices and freedom. But there were some things that had to be done, and he looked exhausted, and I felt helpless.

Emily fixed it, telling him, “You go take a nap in the crib, Ben. Daddy’ll put you to bed. You’re tired.”

“Em,” I started.

She didn’t let me finish, shaking her head firmly, “He’s tired, Daddy, and he needs to take a snooze.”

Sarah stepped in then, saying, “Emily’s right, Matt. Although someone should maybe not be so bossy with everyone else. That shot I gave him is going to make him tired, and he’s better off in the crib than on the couch.”

Ben didn’t argue with me as I lifted him up, although he let out little whimpers until I had him safely tucked into my chest.

“We’re going to get you all set up, sweetheart, and then you can just nap for a bit,” I narrated quietly. “Em? Can you get me a bottle with water in it so that Ben can drink something if he needs it?”

She nodded, going into the kitchen to do as I asked. I carefully got Ben up the stairs, when I realized that I didn’t have anything for him to wear. The clothes he’d been wearing were a bloody mess, and I thought we might need them for evidence. Everything I owned would be huge on him, but I didn’t want to make him sleep naked.

Taking him into the master bedroom, I helped him stand for a minute so he could unwrap the afghan while I grabbed a tee shirt from my dresser, pulling it over his head. 

“It’s not much, but I thought you might want something,” I explained. “At least this won’t be rubbing on anything.”

“Thank you,” he said, sounding exhausted. He sagged against me, and I picked him up so we could go to the nursery. It was empty, but there was a bottle in the crib.

Even moving as carefully as I was able, I could see that he was in pain as I laid him down in the crib. I laid the blanket over him before leaning in and kissing his forehead.

“What do you do when you wake up?” I asked.

He looked confused, and I reminded him, “You call for me, and I’ll come help you up. I’m only bringing the side up halfway, but I don’t want you trying to move around too much.

“‘k,” he mumbled, and I kissed him again.

“Sweet dreams, sweetheart,” I murmured, drawing the curtains and leaving the door partially opened so I could hear him if he woke up.

I found Emily and Sarah in the living room. Em was curled in on herself, far in the corner of the sofa, listening as Sarah talked quietly to her.

Sarah glanced up when I settled myself on the couch; I was close enough to hold Em’s hand, but I waited for her.

“I was just explaining to Miss Emily that nobody is mad at her,” Sarah told me. “It was a bad choice to leave daycare without telling anyone, but we understand why she felt the need to do it.”

“Aunt Sarah’s right,” I agreed. “I think that calling me and telling me what you were worried about would have been a better plan than going to Ben’s. I’m not mad at you though.”

“Just don’t like my choices,” she recited.

“Not even that today, baby,” I corrected. “I’m tired, and I’m worried about Ben, and I’m relieved that you didn’t run into David at their house, but I am so proud of you for caring so much about Ben.”

“He’s staying here,” Emily said, sounding very fierce, all traces of her earlier guilt gone.

Sarah shook her head, “We can’t make him do that.”

“Maybe you can’t,” Emily replied. “I can. An’ ‘m gonna. He’s not goin’ back to that house, an’ if you try to let him, ‘m gon’ do somethin’ real bad.”

“Emily Anne,” I chastised, exhausted and unwilling to be blackmailed.

“I will! An’ it’ll be worth it, Daddy.”

“Alright then,” I told her, standing up and taking her hands. “I think someone needs a time out, please.”

“Daddy!” she protested.

“Go on,” I ordered. “You don’t threaten me. If you want to talk about something, you know that’s always allowed, but we don’t make threats to each other. So you can go and sit in time out please.”

She pouted, but she made her way to time out, placing herself in the corner and staring at the walls. Sarah caught my eye, mouthing, “She’s upset.”

“Yup,” I agreed, resting my head back against the couch. I was going to need all of my energy to deal with everyone else, and I needed a mental break.

“Stupid time out,” I heard behind me, along with the distinct sound of a sneaker clad foot connecting with the wall.

I really didn’t want to deal with this right now, but apparently Em wasn’t going to be able to cope without a little bit more than time out.

“Do we kick walls?” I asked, not moving.

In response, I heard an even harder thump against the plaster, and I got up with a sigh. Emily whirled around, her face stuck somewhere between worried about what was coming and still furious about what had happened.

“Come here,” I told her, grabbing her hand before she could escalate things further. I kept a firm grip on it as I walked us back to the playroom. “Sarah? If Ben calls for me, could you please interrupt us? Emily and I need to have a chat.”

“No Daddy,” she exclaimed, trying to twist her hand out of my grip.

I stopped, giving her a look, “Emily Anne, we’re going to the playroom. You can walk like a big girl, or I can help you like a baby, but we’re going.”

That got her moving, and I managed to get her back into the playroom without any sort of temper tantrum. Shutting the door behind me, I leaned against it and crossed my arms over my chest.

I still didn’t get a temper tantrum, although I did get to feel like a complete shit when my wife, instead of yelling or stomping, dropped as if someone had cut her strings. On the floor, she sobbed and rocked herself.

“Em,” I said, shocked.

She didn’t look at me, covering her face up with her hands and crying as she said, “You can’t send him home, Daddy. You can’t. Please? I’ll do whatever you want! I’ll be really good, an’ I can take care of him ‘cause ‘m bigger. I don’t mind sharing my toys.”

That unstuck me, and I joined her on the floor, pulling her into my lap, “It’s not about you being good or taking care of him. We can’t make Ben stay if he doesn’t want to, baby.”

“But he doesn’t know any better,” she sobbed, turning her face into my chest and crying. “Just tell ‘im he has to, and he will. He’s a good list’ner. He’s just not so good at making decisions for himself.”

There wasn’t anything that I could say to make this better for her. She wanted me to be able to just fix it, and I couldn’t, and so I sat with her, rocking, until she cried herself out and fell asleep.

Ben’s POV

The shot made me sleep, although it didn’t stop my dreams. By the time I woke up, the late afternoon sun was shining across the crib, and I jumped.

“Mr. Matt! Mr. Matt!” I called, frantic.

He was up the stairs and into the nursery before I could open my mouth again, “What’s wrong?” he asked.

“I gotta get up!” I told him, grasping the bars of the crib. “My daddy’ll be home soon, and ‘m not ‘posed to go outside when ‘m in trouble. I gotta go home.”

Mr. Matt nodded, unhooking the side of the crib and picking me up. Carrying me to the rocking chair, he sat down.

As much as I had enjoyed cuddling, I didn’t have time today. “Mr. Matt, I gotta go home now please,” I said politely, too sore to put up much of a fight.

“I need you to listen,” he told me, waiting until I quieted down. “Thank you. Ben, I know that you think that what your daddy is doing is okay, but it’s not. He hurt you; he really hurt you. If it wasn’t for Sarah, we would have ended up in the ER today. I need you to explain to me why you have to go back to that.”

My eyes flooded with hot tears, and I tried to explain, “‘m-I made him do it. But ‘m gon’ work on bein’ better now, so it’s okay.”

“Honey, he broke your nose because you had some arnica that Sarah gave you. You aren’t the one causing this. I really want you to stay here, sweetheart, and I need you to explain why you can’t do that.”

Clenching my fists, I told him, “I don’t want to. You said it was my choice.”

“It is,” he agreed, not getting angry at my tone. “I want you to explain why you’re doing it though.”

“Daddy loves me.”

“So do I,” he said. “So does Emily. So do a lot of people.”

He was wrong, and I told him so. “Nobody loved me before.”

“Well, I love you now,” he retorted. “You are a good little boy, and you don’t deserve to be treated like this. You don’t, sweetheart. And I will help your daddy learn how to do better with you, if that’s what you want, but please don’t ask me to sit by and watch him beat you.”

“He loves me,” I insisted tearfully.

“I know,” Mr. Matt soothed, rocking slowly. “He loves you, and you love him, but I don’t think he knows how to take care of you right now. That’s the thing that scares me, that he doesn’t know how to control his mad feelings, and I’m worried because he hurt you pretty bad this time.”

“I don’t wanna be ‘lone ‘gain. I want someone who wants me, and Daddy wants me,” I explained.

Mr. Matt kept rocking, “You won’t be alone, sweetheart. And even if Daddy wants you, he’s got some big, grown up problems that have nothing to do with you, and he needs to fix them so he can take good care of you.”

“What if don’t nobody want me though?” I asked, playing with the buttons on his shirt.

He smiled down at me, “I want you. Emily wants you.”

“No, but I mean for real.”

“We want you for real,” he insisted. 

“You would take care of me, but Em’ly’s yours. Not me.”

“I would take care of you just like I take care of Emily,” he corrected me. “And when you’re ready, then we’ll talk about other daddies. Either David, once he gets help, or I will help find you the absolute best, most perfect Daddy on earth. I promise you. You are not going to be alone. I won’t let that happen. And I’m pretty sure Emily would kill me if I tried.”

“She’s scary,” I mumbled.

He laughed at that, nodding, “She is.”

I smiled. Daddy didn’t laugh anymore. Not happy laughing, anyway. I wanted to stay here, so badly, but I was scared.

There was a knock on the nursery door, then it was pushed open. Miss Sarah smiled, “It’s good to see you smiling, kiddo. Can I steal Mr. Matt for a minute?”

I started to get up, but Mr. Matt shook his head, “What’s up, Sarah?”

“Charlotte’s called an emergency meeting at her house.”

“I can’t go,” Mr. Matt shrugged. “I’ve got Ben and Emily, and I can’t leave them.”

Emily popped up behind Miss Sarah then, saying, “We’ll be fine, Daddy. Me an’ Ben can watch TV. You’re just next door.”

“Matt, we really need to meet to discuss this,” Miss Sarah insisted.

“Go,” Mr. Matt waved them both out. “Give Ben and me a moment, please.”

When they left, shutting the door behind them, Mr. Matt asked me, “Is that okay, sweetheart? Miss Sarah and I would be next door, and you and Em could just hang out here for a little bit. You can call me if you need me.”

I was used to this, and I nodded calmly, “‘m okay.”

“Promise that you won’t go anywhere,” Mr. Matt said, sounding stern.

“I promise.”

“Until I come back. When I come back, we can talk some more about what you want to do, but you stay until I get back from Charlotte’s,” he continued.

I nodded, and he smiled at me, “Good boy,” he praised. “How about I give you a ride downstairs?”

“Um, I got no pants on,” I blushed.

“That’s right,” he laughed. “Shall we see what we have?”

Mr. Matt carried me back to his bedroom. It took him a minute, but he found a pair of drawstring pants that he helped me put on. We had to cuff them bunches of times, but they worked.

Picking me back up, we started down the stairs, and he settled me on the couch, on my side. Kneeling beside me, he kissed my forehead and covered me up with a blanket.

“Alright, sweetheart. I’m going to get you a bottle of water, and I want you to drink it for me. Miss Sarah and I are just going next door.”

Emily had been sitting in a chair, and she jumped up to sit on the couch once Mr. Matt went to the kitchen.

“If’n you put your head in my lap, I will play with your hair,” she announced. “Daddy does that when I got a headache or the sads.”

I obligingly moved so my head was in her lap, taking the bottle when Mr. Matt came back. He kissed me again, then kissed Em’ly too.

“Be good you two. Call me if you need anything, and stay here, please.”

Emily had turned on the TV, but she turned it off when the front door shut, “Ben?”

“Hmmm?” 

“You gon’ stay with us?”

I didn’t know, and I sighed, frustrated. Emily said, “My daddy wants you to, and I do too. It would be fun. We can make cookies and watch movies, and Daddy will take good care of you.”

“You make cookies?” I asked, interested. It wasn’t like that was how I was going to decide, but Emily sounded so certain that her house was good and her daddy was safe.

“Uh huh,” she sounded excited, and she eased out from under me, “You hungry? We got muffins.”

I propped myself on my elbow, looking at her, “Are you ‘llowed?”

“To what?”

“To just get snacks?”

“Course,” she snorted. “‘cept sometimes, Daddy says, ‘Okay, Em’ly Anne; chill with the cookies,’ but that just means I need to eat more veg’tables and fruit. ‘m still ‘llowed to get food. Daddy likes it when I eat. Food is yummy, and it makes your body work right. You want a muffin? I want a muffin.”

I nodded, and she raced off to the kitchen, returning with several muffins on a plate. “See? Daddy made ‘em yesterday while you snoozed.”

“Where were you?” I asked, taking one of the muffins and slowly eating. It tasted really good, and I had to concentrate on not being a pig.

Emily blushed at that, shrugging and mumbling, “I needed time to myself.”

I didn’t understand what that meant, and I needed to know. If there was any chance that I was staying here I wanted to make sure that this was a good house.

“Where do you do that?”

“Inna playroom,” she explained, sitting back down and resettling my head in her lap. “Daddy put big, velvety drapes up ‘round the windowseat, and I go in there to think or talk to Delphinia and Clara Marguerite or read a book.”

“Like Jane Eyre.”

“That book is okay,” she said, wrinkling her nose, “but I like Anne of Green Gables better.”

“No, Jane has a windowseat.”

“You like to read?” Emily asked, grabbing another muffin and handing it to me. “Eat. You’re too skinny.”

“I like to read,” I told her, eating. It was hard to remember that Emily wasn’t a grown up because she could be really bossy. “What other stuff do you do here?”

“Ummmm,” she thought for a minute. “We read lots. Daddy says books are not spoiling, so we have lots of ‘em. And we cook together, and we make cookies and muffins and stuff too. And we go to the park. An’ me and Daddy both run, so we do that together ‘cause ‘m not s’posed to do it by myself anymore.”

It sounded so nice, but before I could ask her more questions, there was a knock on the door, and she had to get up.

“Stay here an’ rest,” she ordered, going to open the door. “‘sprobably just Daddy. If’n you pull the door shut behind you, it locks.”

It wasn’t her daddy. When I heard David’s voice, I tensed, listening for a minute. 

“Is Benjamin here?” 

He sounded mad, and I brought my hand to my mouth, chewing on a cuticle. 

Emily didn’t sound exactly happy, “You aren’t allowed to be here,” she ordered.

I heard her try to swing the door shut, but I could have told her that wouldn’t work. “You aren’t supposed to be rude,” he admonished. “Now answer my question.”

“Go away,” she told him. 

“I will not,” he retorted. There was scuffling, and I finally peeked up over the back of the couch, scared of what I would see.

“Benjamin Andrew,” he glared at me, “what did I tell you about leaving the house?”

“Not to,” I whispered, gnawing harder on my finger.

Emily was still trying to close the door, but Daddy was standing there, and she couldn’t. Frustrated, she stomped her foot, “You go ‘way! You’re not ‘llowed to be here!”

“Emily,” I said, nervous.

Daddy glared at her, easily shoving his way into the house, “You’re a rude little bitch, you know that?”

I was surprised that Daddy had said that, but I was more surprised by what Emily did in response. Glaring at him, she drew back her sneaker and slammed it into his shin.

“And you’re an abusive dick,” she responded. Turning to me, she yelled, “Go get a grown up.”

I felt frozen, watching as Daddy yelped in pain. She’d shocked him, but he got over it quickly, slapping her hard across the face before he made his way to me.

“Go get a grown up, Ben,” he mimicked. “I am a grown up, and I’m telling you it’s time to go home. We have a lot to talk about.”

Pulling away, I looked over to the doorway. Emily was leaning against the wall, hand on her cheek, and I said, “Em? You okay?”

Daddy grabbed my arm, pulling me up and making me yelp in pain, “Do you want me to start here, Benjamin Andrew? It seems like you aren’t the only one who needs a little discipline.”

He was shaking me, and I hurt all over. In spite of all of the training, I whimpered and cried.

Emily’s POV

I saw stars when he hit me. I always thought it was just an expression, but it actually happened, and it took me a minute to clear my head.

Once I did though, I saw him shaking Ben like a ragdoll, and I stopped thinking about wanting my daddy. Instead, all I could think about was how scared Ben looked.

Throwing myself at Mr. David, I clawed and kicked, screaming at him to let go and leave Ben alone. I only got in a few good hits before I found myself violently tossed to the ground.

“Don’t!” I yelled at him, trying to kick from my supine position, but he simply stepped over me, walking to the door, and I shrieked in frustration.

Rolling onto my stomach, I forced myself back up to my feet, then charged at him, grabbing his arm and throwing all my weight into it. For the first time in my entire life, I wished that I weighed more.

“Let ‘im go!” I ordered. 

I hadn’t expected him to listen to me, but David dropped Ben, turning on me, “You’re a disrespectful, horrible, arrogant, little girl, and I don’t know how your daddy can stand you. He’ll thank me for this.”

He yanked me off of him and stalked back to the couch. In spite of my best efforts, I found myself tossed over the back of the couch, my cotton skirt raised and my panties pushed down until they dropped right off my feet.

“Le’ me go! LET ME GO!” I screamed as I felt something slam against my bottom, trying desperately to twist away and off the couch. I couldn’t get any leverage to get away. 

Nothing worked. I was stuck, and he just kept hitting me, and I really wanted my daddy to come now.

Matt’s POV

“There’s no point to any of this if we can’t keep them safe,” I ground out, furious and frustrated at the way the meeting was going.

Charlotte looked incredibly calm, which only served to piss me off more. “Ben has a right to decide what he wants, Matt. We can’t force him to leave; we can only make sure that he understands that we’ll help him if that’s what he wants.”

We’d been going around in circles for close to twenty minutes, and I could tell that everyone else was getting tired.

“This doesn’t make any sense though,” I argued. “We’re supposed to be building a sense of community; I’m sure as hell not going to be anywhere near David-”

That was when I found myself interrupted by frantic pounding on the door, coupled with Ben’s voice screaming for me.

Sarah was closer, and she beat me to the door, but Ben found me almost immediately, racing at me while babbling incoherently. He had to be in pain, and my first thought was concern about what he was doing to his injuries.

Then, I started to understand bits and pieces of what he was saying. His daddy was at my house, and Emily had yelled at him, and I needed to come now. Those were the things that registered, and I didn’t stop to think as I passed Ben off to Sarah.

“Keep him here,” I ordered, starting toward my house. I had barely made it out the door before I heard Emily’s screams, and it seemed like everything went into slow motion before speeding up.

When I got through the door of my own home, I found Emily being pinned down over the couch. Her skirt was up, and her underwear was on the floor. David, standing behind her, was lifting his belt up to strike her again, but I caught his arm first.

Jerking the belt from his hand, I began swinging it at him, not caring where I hit, “What the hell is the matter with you?” I shouted. “You want to hit someone? Go ahead and hit me! HIT ME! What’s wrong? Am I too big? It’s no fun when someone fights back?”

He was cowering, and I couldn’t seem to make myself stop. I had wanted to hurt him for the way he’d hurt Ben, but seeing Emily over the back of the couch made me lose control. I wanted him dead.

It took two other daddies to pull me off, although I continued to struggle. A tiny voice cut through my rage, waking me up enough to get control of myself.

“Is okay, Em’ly,” Ben was murmuring, as he helped my little girl down and pulled her skirt into place. “It hurts, but it’s okay. Just lay down on your tummy, and I’ll get you Delphin’a.”

He had helped Emily to lay down on the couch, and he was patting her back gently, “‘s’okay if’n you cry; I know the belt hurts.”

Emily clearly hadn’t needed his permission, although she managed a shaky smile around her sobs, “Thanks.”

“You’ll be okay,” he promised. “I’ll be right back.”

Slowly, painfully, he made his way upstairs, returning several minutes later. He didn’t bother to look at me or at David as he walked to the couch and handed over the rag doll. 

“She’ll make you feel better,” he whispered. “An’ Miss Sarah will fix you up. I don’t even barely hurt no more, Em.”

Sarah had been carefully surveying the damage, and she smiled kindly at Ben, “That’s sweet, kiddo, but Em and I need some privacy to fix up her bottom.”

He nodded seriously, and for the first time he looked at me. Someone had helped David up, and he was being hustled out of my house, spewing something about filing charges against me.

That got to me enough that I managed to free myself and stalk over to him. Keeping my voice low, I hissed, “If you step foot in my house again, you won’t have to worry about me beating you up. I will kill you. And you’re welcome to go to the cops; I’m sure the photos I have of your partner’s injuries, not to mention what you just did to my wife, will be very interesting to them.”

Paling, he glared at me before saying, “Ben, come on.”

“No,” I heard a tiny voice, and I turned to stare at Ben. He wouldn’t look at David as he said, “‘m not goin’ with you.”

“Come. Here. Benjamin.”

Ben shook his head, “‘m not going home with you. Not ever again. You hurt Em’ly real bad ‘cause you got angry, but even if’n you’re angry, you shouldn’t’ve done it.”

“And where the hell do you think you’re going to stay?”

That got Ben to look up, and he said steadily, “With Em’ly, if’n her daddy lets me. Or with Aunt Charlotte. Someplace. I don’t know, but ‘m not goin’ with you.”

“Good riddance,” David told him. “You’re an awful little brat, and I’m sick of dealing with you.”

Taking David’s arm, I firmly escorted him from my house, “Then you can leave, and I don’t expect to see you again,” I informed him.

When I came back in, I looked for Emily and Ben, Em was gone. Sarah was too, so I knew she was somewhere, probably the playroom, getting her wounds looked at. I wanted to join her, but I needed to check on Ben first.

He was standing alone in the middle of the room, fingers to his mouth. He started talking.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’ll just go! I didn’t-she told me to get you, but I couldn’t, and I’m sorry Em’ly got hurt. I don’t have to stay here, but I didn’t know what to tell-”

He was clearly spinning out, and I crossed the floor to him quickly, catching him before he could race away. Hugging him tightly, I pulled fingers from his mouth.

“Don’t chew on yourself,” I admonished, giving him a squeeze. “You’re fine. You don’t need to apologize; David did something wrong, and you were very brave to come and get me. I know that was hard, and I’m proud of you.”

“Em’ly got hurt,” he whispered, and I could feel hot tears soaking through my tee shirt. “He hurt her.”

“He did,” I agreed, carefully leading him to the couch and sitting. I knew that Sarah was taking care of Emily, and I figured she’d be okay with me helping Ben. “David hurt Emily. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I didn’t mean I gotta stay here.”

“You want to tell Em you’re leaving? I’m pretty sure she’ll pin you down.”

That got a little giggle, and I could feel him relaxing against me. We sat for a few more minutes until I was sure that he had calmed down, and then I said, “Sweetheart? I want to check on Emily. Would you like to go to the nursery?”

“Yes sir,” Ben replied, quickly getting up and starting toward the stairs.

“Hold it,” I stopped him, beckoning him back. When he was standing in front of me, I said, “No sir, please. You can call me Matt, or Mr. Matt, but no sir. Now, do you want to go to the nursery, or are you just saying yes?”

“I don’t know?”

I nodded, smiling at him and hoisting him up, “Then I think we’ll both go and check on Miss Emily.”

He didn’t object, and I walked us back to the playroom to see my wife. Having both of them around here was going to be a lot of work, and I was hoping that Em hadn’t been fibbing when she promised to help.


End file.
